Financial
Report
Statutory Information
and Governance
Compliance
Policies

Finance, Governance and Policies

AWARE has been accorded IPC (Institution of a Public Character) status from 01/09/2020 to 31/08/2022. AWARE has a constitution as its governing instrument.

Financial Report

AWARE ended 2021 with a surplus of $337,083 (2020: $1,322,633). It had an income of $3,456,245 (2020: $4,083,248) and expenses of $3,119,162 (2020: $2,760,615).

AWARE’s total funds at the end of 2021 were $6,585,105 (2020: $6,248,022).

The charity has disclosed its restricted funds in its Financial Statements (note 12 on page 25). See the 2021 Audited Financial Statements for full information.

Statutory Information and Governance Compliance

AWARE consistently works towards improving its transparency, governance, HR, IT and risk-management practices. To this end, we carried out the following initiatives:

  1. Developed strategic plan for 2022 – 2024
  2. Conducted third-party audit of AWARE’s donation management processes
  3. Updated risk assessment and management plan
  4. Updated anti-harassment and anti-discrimination policy and procedure
  5. Developed HR data protection rules for employees
  6. Updated performance appraisal process
  7. Implemented budget variance reporting

AWARE is compliant with the Code of Governance (2017). Refer to our Statutory Information and Governance Evaluation Checklist.

Policies

i) Financial policies

AWARE’s financial policies require competitive quotations for fair pricing. Annual budgets are approved by the board before adoption. Payments are regulated by a payment process and in accordance with the mandate for payment.

ii) Conflict of interest

AWARE has established a Conflict of Interest policy at the board and staff levels to assist in identifying and managing potential areas of conflict.

All board members and staff undertake to declare any situation of conflict that may arise. They abstain from decision-making in such instances, so as to allow a fair and transparent decision-making process. They are also required to make a negative affirmation annually.

iii) Reserves

AWARE aims to maintain a reserve that is equivalent to at least 12 months of its operating expenses to ensure continuity of its services and programmes.

The reserves are held in cash in either current or fixed deposit accounts, in accordance with guidelines on minimising risk and maintaining liquidity. These operational guidelines have been established and approved by the board.

Every six months, the board reviews the amount of reserves that are required to ensure that they are adequate.

If the reserves fall below the threshold of 12 months operating expenses, board approval will be required to utilise the remaining reserves. Management will inform the Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer at least three months before the cashflow is expected to breach the threshold.

iv) Loans

AWARE does not:

  1. grant any loans, donations, grants or financial assistance;
  2. receive any loans for any purpose or tenure;

without the prior written approval of the board.

v) Other policies

In addition to the above, AWARE has a range of documented policies and procedures, including the following:

  1. Board Roles Policy and Code of Conduct for Board Members
  2. Employees’ Handbook
  3. Consultants Code of Conduct
  4. Financial Policy and Procedures
  5. Social Media Guide
  6. Whistleblowing Policy
  7. Data Protection Policy
  8. Anti Harassment and Anti Discrimination Policy and Procedures